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HEARTS ON FIRE

Maybe the sole unexpected element of Heart of Midlothian's victory over Celtic in the Scottish top flight was just how taken aback observers appeared when reports of the outcome and its impact for the summit of the table emerged. While this convincing victory at their home ground, which leaves the Edinburgh side leading of the league and a significant margin clear of their rivals, was earth-shattering in scale, no one who has been tracking the fortunes of both team this season will have been in the least shocked by the result.

For each of the past 40 seasons, the Glasgow duopoly of Celtic and Rangers have divided the Scottish football between them, reducing fitba to something of a punchline in the meantime. Several matches into the present season it has become clear that Hearts – who number celebrated snooker player, Olympic champion and renowned actor among their celebrity fans – could be ready to strike while the Glasgow duo iron is at its weakest.

THE CHAMPIONS' SLUMP

Although a lot of the attention in Scotland has been on the disastrous season being endured by the Ibrox club, the complete turmoil of the circumstances at their stadium has meant that Celtic's comparatively less severe decay has been allowed to worsen unnoticed. The reigning champions have already dropped 10 points from their opening nine fixtures this season under Brendan Rodgers. The Celtic manager has developed the distant look of a man who constantly consulting his schedule to find out how many days are left until his contract ends, and awoke this day to learn the answer is over two hundred.

"I've never worked harder in my entire tenure here," he told reporters following the loss, after they had questioned his appetite for anything resembling a championship battle. "So the motivation is present to try and flip the levels that we're at. Everything is under control, it's still so early."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Given the dreadful start to the season being experienced by Rangers, Rodgers and his men could normally be anticipated to escape scrutiny for their own failure to start strongly, but on this occasion an capital city challenger has entered the fray. Despite being obliged to function with a budget that isn't so much a tiny fraction of Celtic's as a minuscule amount in comparison, Hearts have added the money and expertise of a renowned businessman to the Scottish Premiership equation. As well as putting in £10m during the summer, the Brighton owner has provided the club sole use of his highly confidential analytics-based proprietary scouting recruitment tool.

In an Irish defender, Alexandros Kyziridis and a Brazilian prospect it has allowed them to unearth hidden talents from Walsall, the Slovakian top flight and the Norwegian second tier, among other lesser-known leagues, for the total price of a modest car. Seen at Tynecastle on Sunday sporting a club colours, the notoriously astute sports betting expert could be observed celebrating each score with the enthusiasm of a man who had likely realized the bookies had greatly misjudged his side's chances of beating the struggling title holders, and placed large bets accordingly.

MANAGER'S REACTION

"In my opinion it's a message-sending victory," said bearded Hearts gaffer the head coach after his side's most recent success, their eighth in nine outings. "Perhaps it is for others on the outside looking in. It could alter opinions. It might validate views that there's a fine line. But we must be realistic, we're really pleased with what the lads have provided us. In terms of skill, we look in a good place, and definitely in fitness we look in a excellent shape, so we hope it persists. Naturally, it's not a position that this club is accustomed to being in." Correct, Derek, it is not. But the glorious, analytics-backed reality is that for the initial occasion in many years, Scottish football might genuinely have a championship battle that somebody besides Celtic or Rangers can claim.